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College  | Story  | 3/14/2011

PG Top 25: Surging in Louisiana

Kendall Rogers     

You can follow college baseball managing editor Kendall Rogers on Twitter @KendallRogersPG and can join the Perfect Game College Baseball Facebook page. Fans also can subscribe here to receive the college baseball ultimate ticket.

CHAT TRANSCRIPT: Kendall Rogers' weekly college baseball chat

PREMIUM: 25 other college baseball teams to watch

Florida has a monumental SEC-opening series at LSU coming up later this week, and will head to Baton Rouge, La., as the nation's top-ranked team after another solid week that included a 4-1 record and series win over Rhode Island.

The Gators have been ranked No. 1 in the Perfect Game Top 25 since the preseason rankings were unveiled. However, other teams around the country have made significant strides in the rankings.

Virginia made a huge statement over the weekend with a road series sweep against Clemson and moved from No. 9 to No. 4 as a result, while LSU climbed from No. 17 to No. 10 following a clean sweep of Cal State Fullerton. South Carolina also moved, going from No. 8 to No. 5 after a win over Clemson and series win over Cal State Bakersfield.

Speaking of Clemson, the Tigers dropped from No. 12 to No. 22 after a winless week, while UCLA fell from No. 10 to No. 21 after once again failing to produce offensively during a 1-2 weekend with losses to Georgia and USC.

Auburn (20) and Oregon (23) dropped out of the rankings to make way for Baylor and Arkansas, who each had great weeks. The Bears come in at No. 23 while the Razorbacks make their season debut at No. 25.

The conference breakdowns are as follows: Pac-10 5, ACC 5, SEC 5, Big 12 4, Conference USA 2 and MWC, Big West, WAC and Big East all with one representative.

The Perfect Game Top 25 is released each Monday during the season, and alwaays will include an additional listing of 25 teams to watch and a live chat with college baseball managing editor Kendall Rogers.

1. Florida (14-2)
Previous ranking: 1, Weekly record: 4-1
The Gators had another solid week that began with a tough midweek loss and ended with a midweek win before sweeping Rhode Island at home. Now comes a trip to hostile Baton Rouge, La.

2. Vanderbilt (16-1)
Previous ranking: 2, Weekly record: 5-0
It was another week of less than stellar competition for the Commodores, as they took midweek games from Wofford and Kennesaw State before sweeping Illinois-Chicago at home in a surprisingly hard-fought series.

3. Florida State (15-1)
Previous ranking: 6, Weekly record: 5-0
The Seminoles have been extremely consistent this season, and had another great week that included midweek wins over Maine and a home series sweep over Boston College.

4. Virginia (16-1)
Previous ranking: 9, Weekly record: 4-0
The Cavaliers put together their most impressive week of the season with a midweek win over Marshall before hitting the road and doing a clean sweep of Clemson.

5. South Carolina (11-2)
Previous ranking: 8, Weekly record: 3-1
The Gamecocks had a solid week that began with a series-clinching win over Clemson and ended with a solid series win over surprising Cal State Bakersfield.

6. Oklahoma (16-1)
Previous ranking: 5, Weekly record: 2-1
The Sooners had another successful week with a series win over Arkansas-Little Rock. However, the series win was a little too close for comfort for coach Sunny Golloway.

7. Texas (11-5)
Previous ranking: 4, Weekly record: 4-1
The Longhorns dropped a couple of spots to make way for others. They defeated Texas-San Antonio in midweek action before taking three of four from Brown.

8. TCU (10-5)
Previous ranking: 3, Weekly record: 3-1
The Horned Frogs began the week with a midweek triumph over Texas-Arlington before staying home and taking two of three from Houston Baptist.

9. Arizona State (11-3)
Previous ranking: 11, Weekly record: 2-1
The Sun Devils made their biggest statement of the season. They went 2-1 for the week with a huge road series win over SEC representative Auburn.

10. LSU (15-1)
Previous ranking: 17, Weekly record: 4-0
The Tigers made a huge leap forward after another fantastic week. They defeated Sacred Heart in midweek action before sweeping Cal State Fullerton at home. Next is a huge series against Florida.

11. Cal State Fullerton (8-6)
Previous ranking: 7, Weekly record: 0-3
The Titans dropped a pair of games to LSU by one run to start their series in Baton Rouge, but were dominated in the series finale. Not a good weekend for the Titans.

12. Stanford (6-5)
Previous ranking: 13, Weekly record: 0-0
The Cardinal had the week off because of final exams, but still moved up a spot with several teams slipping in the rankings.

13. Arizona (13-3)
Previous ranking: 15, Weekly record: 4-1
The Wildcats split a pair of midweek games against UNLV before returning home and sweeping a three-game series from Northern Colorado.

14. Georgia Tech (12-4)
Previous ranking: 18, Weekly record: 4-0
The Yellow Jackets continue to tally impressive numbers on the mound. They defeated Kennesaw State in midweek action before sweeping Maryland to begin ACC play.

15. California (10-4)
Previous ranking: 19, Weekly record: 4-0
The Golden Bears returned to normal last week with a perfect record. They defeated Santa Clara in the midweek before defeating Louisiana-Lafayette, Rice and Long Beach State in tournament play.

16. Fresno State (11-2)
Previous ranking: 22, Weekly record: 3-1
The Bulldogs continue to pitch at a high level and had a fantastic week that included a midweek triumph over Cal State Bakersfield and a road series win over Nebraska.

17. Rice (10-8)
Previous ranking: 14, Weekly record: 2-3
The Owls split a pair of midweek games against Sam Houston State and Florida International before hitting the road and losing two games to California and Long Beach State.

18. Texas A&M (12-4)
Previous ranking: 21, Weekly record: 3-1
The Aggies couldn't have asked for a better week. They crushed Centenary in midweek action before taking two of there from Florida International at home.

19. North Carolina (14-3)
Previous ranking: 16, Weekly record: 3-2
Perhaps the Tar Heels got a little overconfident over the weekend. They swept midweek games from Elon and St. John's before somehow losing two of three to Wake Forest.

20. Tulane (11-4)
Previous ranking: 25, Weekly record: 2-1
Even with some quality arms missing time, the Green Wave put together another solid week that included a home series win over a solid Wichita State club.

21. UCLA (8-6)
Previous ranking: 10, Weekly record: 1-2
The Bruins would be just fine if they could find a way to hit with consistency. They dropped tough contests to Georgia and rival USC over the weekend.

22. Clemson (7-6)
Previous ranking: 12, Weekly record: 0-4
The Tigers are headed back to the drawing board. They dropped an early-week affair against rival South Carolina before getting swept by Virginia at home.

23. Baylor (11-5)
Previous ranking: NR, Weekly record: 5-0
The Bears had an extremely impressive week on the diamond, taking a midweek game from Texas State before completing a four-game sweep of Louisiana Tech.

24. Connecticut (7-6)
Previous ranking: 24, Weekly record: 3-2
The Huskies crushed San Diego to begin the week and dropped a midweek game to UC Irvine before taking two of three from San Diego in a three-game series to end their West Coast road trip.

25. Arkansas (13-2)
Previous ranking: NR, Weekly record: 3-1
The Razorbacks hit the road over the weekend and took three of four games from San Diego State. They've quietly put together an impressive campaign.

Kendall Rogers is the managing editor of college baseball for Perfect Game USA and has covered the sport for over 10 seasons. He can be reached at kendall@perfectgame.org